Gardening Notes

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume LXXXIII, Issue 20104, 24 March 1928, Page 16 (Supplement)

Gardening Notes

(BY

ALKANET).

KITCHEN GARDEN The weather at present is on its best behaviour. .It. is still warm and the autumn growth is quite satisfactory. The cabbage and cauliflower are suffering rather badly from the. fly but it will not trouble them much longer as the nights will soon get colder and we will have more rain. It has been splendid weather for lifting potatoes. The crops have, been quite satisfactory except where they were planted late. Late sown peas are doing well but. they must have plenty of attention with the hoe to keep them growing. Late beans also are doing well and unless an early frost catches them they will have a good crop. It is too late to sow peas or beans unless an exceptionally warm place not subject to frosts is available.

Lettuce may be sown and transplanted as soon as large enough. The beds must be well worked, liberally manured and unless the soil is very warm peat or sand the beds should be raised above the surrounding ground.

Autumn sown carrots may be sown now. Use only early varieties. The beds or rows must be deeply dug and well worked ami the soil must be rich. I urnips may be sown at any time now. I'hey should he sown at regular intervals. Bows sown now should have plenty of Attention to help the plants along. They should be thinned out in the rows as soon as they are large enough to handle. The warm, dry days we have had will have enabled us to get rid of all'weeds at a minimum of expense.

All empty plots should be sown in green manuring crops. The weather could not be better for this work. It may be a little dry for small seed but such seeds as lupin, oats and barley that like good covering will respond readily. All onions should by now be strung and stored under cover. Go over them regularly in case any of the bulbs are bruised and happen to rot. This is the time 1o select seed potatoes for next. spring's planting. Medium to small bulbs are the best for this purpose. Leave them to dry in the bim. They are all the better for keeping purposes if the weather turns them green. They should be stored as openly as possible. An open shed will do as long as it keeps the frost out. Potatoes to be used for table use should not be stored where the sun or light can reach them. They must be kept in the darkness and perfectly dry. If seed potatoes are kept in the darkness for any length of lime their shoots when planted will be very feeble. Tomatoes are ripening well now. If nearly all the fruit is off the bushes it may be a good plan to cut the foliage <4l. I he* late planted ones, however, should not be treated in this way, it would be better for them to retain' the foliage until the middle of next month. Early planted ones would ripen off better without the foliage, especially if we have a lot of moist weather when old foliage is inclined to induce the blight drink of water. When a doctor docs that he gets ten and sixpence, and ?.e dues not notice until he gets home that rhe sixpence is a ba«d o.ie. But if a faith-healer had iJjonc it he would have had his photograph on the front page of the illustrated papers under tae heading ‘‘The Performer of Aliraclcs. It’s a weary world. Two Women. 1 ask yon to consider for a moment the case of two women, exactly allKe in their worldly circumstances, "and to both of them, on lhe same day, come the tidings that they are from cancer. The first woman meets the news with .dignified courage; she •holidis her head up and faces the situation with an unclouded brow, an untroubled mien; she determines to keep her own troubles to herself, and io g.r through the world brave and. cheerful. The only effect the news has on her is to make her redouble .her efforts to live for the sake of others in entire ; self-forgetfulness. The second woman collapses with a shriek; she cries and moans; she refuses to .do anything; she upsets herself and all around her. Every iday she goes out, only to complain to every neighbour who will listen to her of her awful trouble. She neglects her children, her husband, and her home. She is a useful member of society, and does all she can to make everyone else miserable, (’ompletely self-centred, she becomes the most unhappy woman in the town. Now contrast those Iwo women; which one would you like to imitate? And suppose someone came

along who spoke with sympathy and yet with firmness to the poor collapsed woman, and brought peace and courage to her tormented mini 4, would nor he deserve the gold medal for faithhealing? He eould not euro her body, but he could cure her mind; he could restore her faith; he could make her happier, and well might the woman say that she had never felt so well until she tried the faith healing, and she found that her pain was not so bad as she thought, after all. Ah? we arc not. laughing at faith-healing now. Use Your Sense. So when anyone asks you whether you believe in faith-healing, you are to reply that you know that there i? a great deal of nonsense talked eboni the marvellous miracles performed in the name of faith-healing, and that vou will not bo deceived by such rubbish. But, you will please add. if faith-healing moans a brave outlook on life, a determination not to give way to human weaknesses, a well-baT-

anccd mind, a resolution to load a life of activity that loaves no time fof groaning over imaginarv troubles, .then you will become an ardent faith-healer and cultivate it with all your might.

Io spread. There should 'be no need for watering except perhaps in very dry spots. Celery should be kept very clean and the soil between rows should be stirred frequent I v to keep it as sweet as possible. THE FLOWER GARDEN Tn the ornamental garden ideal conditions prevail for laying out new gardens preparatory to planting them later. It is also good weather for sowing new lawns. If a dry spell turns up after the, grass has been sown it is a good idea, if water 1s available, to moisten the top every evening. It must be only just moistened though. Too much water is as bad as too little. The water should not be hosed directly on to the surface of the lawn. .It, is best to force the water upwards and let it fall naturally. Then* is then no displacement of seed or soil. If no water is available the lawn should be sown just before or after a sufficient fall of moisture to keep the seed moist for a few days. Weather conditions have been very favourable for growth. Chrysanthemums have made great growth and disbudding may now be attended io cn the early varieties and on the main crop and late ones as soon as tho buds show. While, disbudding should not be too ; severe it. pays to reduce the number of buds considerably even on plants to be left in the garden for display. For cutting purposes the blooms will he greatly improved if at learr half of the, buds are. removed. Some of the large blooming varieties should always have the main bud removed to induce the remaining buds to make better blooms. .Single chrysanthemums also should be disbudded. These have been greatly improved lately. The weather has been very favourable for the growth of dahlias, and frequent disbudding must be carried out. or the biooms will be poor. Two or three buds on a branch must always be moved, sometimes more than that. This applies especially to the modern dahlias with the stiff stems. This is ideal weather for sowing annuals in the open. The sun is excessively hot and the soil sufficiently warm to make the seed germinate straight away. A little watering may help to keep the, bed just moist but not wet. Early sown seed should be pricked and as soon as each variety is readv.

Conditions are just right for planting out all varieties of bulbs, from nacissi to the more tender bulbs such as tulips and hyancinths. Do not plant bulbs in a hurry and put them in anyhow. They are plants that like well prepared ground. Drainage is the main factor; they must be well drained or they will not flower early. This applies especially to anemones.

Carnations may be taken off the layers if rooted. Primroses and polyanthus may be transplanted as soon as the ground is sufficiently moist to keep them from drooping. All lilies may be transplanted now. Bearded iris may bo planted any time now. Cuttings may be made of soft wooded plants such as geranium, peltargonium, penstemmon, gaura, antirrhinium, wallflower, verbenr:, violas, etc. Put the cuttings in sandy soil and if the position is sunny a little shade will help them to root. Bulbous trees may be planted now. All small and tender perenials may be devided from now on. In a small garden a few’ shrubs for exposed places are often needed. The cabbage tree is one of the best but it runs up very quickly, and is not as useful as it might be. Very often a flowering shrub is desired. One of the best of these is the Spanish broom. It will stand any amount of wind and will flower even in a very drp spot. The other brooms wilr stand exposure but not as much as the Spanish variety. The budlca is another shrub that will grow and flower in an exposed position. Budlca veichii is more showy as regards blooms, but budlea salisifolia, which flowers during the winter, is the most desirable. Its foliage is more ornamental than that of veichii. Both respond to pruning. The escalonia also does well in an exposed position. FJorabunda, the largest, is a very strong grower and will till a good-sized space and will be a mass of blooms each spring. EscoJonia langleyensis is not so well known. It has a small strong growing foliage and slender branches with masses of bright scarlet, flowers m spring. It makes a very fine show. Those two shrubs take kindly to pruning which must be done in the spring after they have finished flowering. Any of these shrubs are suitable also for planting outside the garden proper, on any hillside or unsightly spot, once they get a start they will soon cover ugly places.